The Spice Necklace

The key to a good book for me is attention to details without making the story boring. Ann Vanderhoof has a talent for describing things in a way that is both fascinating and enjoyable. Her informative yet lighthearted writing allows you to possibly learn something new while enjoying her tales of food and adventure in other countries.

Vanderhoof’s first book, An Embarrassment of Mangoes, was a huge hit and she follows it up with The Spice Necklace, which intertwines the joy of food and travel while sailing aboard her sailboat, Receta. Being from the South, I thoroughly appreciate a good meal so I love how she includes recipes for the foods she talks about in her book. I also am amazed by her ability to make such wonderful meals while on board. Living on a boat, myself, I can say that cooking on board can often be a juggling act but if you have a system down you can work miracles in a small space!

I began reading this book while I was in Eleuthera and while there I came up with a new goal…perhaps one day I will meet Ms. Vanderhoof while sailing and I will invite her to come to dinner in hopes that she might tell me some stories of her travels and teach me how to cook some of these wonderful recipes!